Investors who owned stocks in the last 13 years have generally experienced some big gains. In fact, the SPDR S&P 500 SPY total return since June 29, 2007 is 201.5%.
On that day in history, Apple, Inc AAPL officially released the first-ever iPhone — arguably the most successful product of all time.
Apple’s iPhone Boom: Apple’s last 20 years were defined by two major trends.
Apple launched the iPhone in 2007, which ultimately became the most successful product in the history of the economy.
In the year it was launched, Apple sold 1.39 million iPhone devices. By 2015, Apple was selling 231.2 million iPhones per year.
Apple recently unveiled its family of iPhone 12 models, which are the first to be compatible with 5G mobile networks.
Analysts are expecting 5G iPhones to trigger yet another massive global upgrade cycle among existing iPhone users.
When iPhone sales growth began to slow in recent years, Apple made a massive pivot to a recurring services model, a transition that is ongoing to this day.
On the day the original iPhone launched back in 2007, Apple shares were trading at around $150.
Apple shares peaked at $202.96 prior to the 2008 financial crisis, but only dropped as low as $79.14 during the crisis sell-off. Incredibly, Apple was back making new highs again before the end of 2009.
Apple ultimately peaked at $705.07 in 2012 prior to a seven-to-one stock split in 2014.
The stock split dropped Apple’s share price down back below $90, but Apple made it back above $200 again by mid-2018.
Related Link: Here's How Much Investing $1,000 In Goldman Sachs At Great Recession Lows Would Be Worth Today
Apple In 2020 And Beyond: Apple hit $327.85 in early 2020 prior to the COVID-19 sell-off, which dropped the stock back down to as low as $212.61.
News of another five-to-one stock split in August sent Apple shares soaring as high as $515.14 before the split dropped them back down to under $115.
The iPhone certainly launched the most lucrative era of Apple’s history, and $1,000 invested in Apple stock on the day the iPhone launched would be worth about $30,500 today, assuming reinvested dividends.
Looking ahead, analysts are expecting more upside from Apple in the next 12 months. The average price target among the 36 analysts covering the stock is $126.25, suggesting 10.7% upside from current levels.
Photo by Yutaka Tsutano via Wikimedia.
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